Suwa Shrine

Suwa Shrine stands on the hillside above the centre of Nagasaki and is the tutelary shrine of the city, the one its people belong to by birth. In Nagasaki it is called Osuwa-san.

In the sixteenth century Nagasaki was handed over to the Jesuits and became church land, and the shrines that had stood in the town went with it.

Three of them, Suwa, Morisaki and Sumiyoshi, were brought back in 1625 by Aoki Katakiyo, the first chief priest, who set them up together on a hill at Nishiyama and made them the guardian of the town. In 1648 the shogunate granted the shrine land, and it moved to the site it occupies now. A fire in 1857 destroyed most of its buildings, and the rebuilding was finished in 1869.

The main deity is Suwa Okami, that is Takeminakata, a god of war and of turning away misfortune. Morisaki Okami, worshipped for the making of all things and for bringing people together, and Sumiyoshi Okami, for safety at sea and good catches, are enshrined with him. Between them they cover what a port city asks for.

The shrine's great festival, the Nagasaki Kunchi, is held on 7, 8 and 9 October. It is one of the three great kunchi festivals, with those of Hakata and Karatsu, and is an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property.

Entry to the shrine grounds is free. From the Suwa Jinja tram stop, an underpass leads to the approach, and from there long flights of stone steps climb to the main hall.